Logistics & Distribution: Delivering The Goods In A Real-Time Economy

Wednesday, June 19, 2019

Efficiency, optimization and speed have always been top priorities in logistics and transportation. Today, as digital transformations are ushering in the next revolution of industry, known as Industry 4.0, these priorities are even more crucial.

In 2019 State of Third-Party Logistics Report, 3PL cites five new opportunities for leveraging digital transformation technologies that rapidly are moving the logistics and distribution sector into what is broadly known as Industry 4.0. These include the expansion of warehouses while coping with labor shortages; eCommerce and Omnichannel customer experience; the rising pressure to increase 3PL profitability; increased competition and “the Amazon Effect”; and the need to improve warehouse customer service.

3PL, a leader in warehouse management solutions, says in the report that today’s third-party logistics managers have to find ways to increase speed, accuracy and productivity without hiring new workers. These operations managers also must adapt to eCommerce-specific workflows in order to expand into omnichannel marks that grew by 14 percent ($506 billion) in 2018. According to 3PL, maintaining operational efficiency in the digital world of online buying requires warehouses to automate labor-intensive tasks—deploying mobile scanning technology, for example—while offering data accuracy.